Thursday, 27 December 2007

The Tanzania Amateur Handball Association (Taha) secretary general, Sudi Omary, has said preparations for national handball club championships to be held from January 25 to 31 in Mwanza, are in full gear.

The Taha official said the organisers are now finalising the exercise to refurbish the venues for the event to involve male and female teams.

Teams expected to compete in the championship are Ngome, Ngudu, Dar Stars (men and women) and KMKM (men) and holders Magereza (men) and Ruvu Stars (women).

Monday, 24 December 2007

Tanzania has received a $47 million boost for its energy sector from the African Development Fund.

The money - comprising a $45.1 million loan and a $2.1 million grant - will be used to extend, secure and improve the supply of electricity to economic sectors and households in rural towns, peri-urban areas and district headquarters in the country.

ADF said Mwanza, Shinyanga, Arusha and Dar es Salaam will benefit from the fund.

Saturday, 22 December 2007

The commission formed to investigate the circumstances that led to the recent twin surgeries at the Muhimbili Orthopedic Institute (MOI) that went awry has blamed the debacle on irresponsibility by medical practitioners.

Health and Social Welfare minister David Mwakyusa unveiled the findings of the team at a news conference in Dar es Salaam yesterday. He formed the commission two weeks ago.

The minister said the medical practitioners involved in carrying out the operations flouted both professional and administrative procedures.

Wednesday, 19 December 2007

AN ADVENTUROUS charity worker faces Christmas heartbreak after the motorbike he used to drive unscathed through the lawless badlands of Africa was stolen by opportunist thieves when he returned to Stockport.

Charles Clark, 29, used his Honda LX250 to drive almost 5,000 miles home from Tanzania following a two-year teaching stint.

After three months riding through countries containing local militia, armies fighting a civil war and zealous border officials Charles thought his bike would be safe left covered up in his sister Claire Clark’s backyard on Bower Street, Reddish.

Tuesday, 18 December 2007

The government has proposed immediate suspension of fishing permits for the East African member states following reports of rapid depletion of fish in Lake Victoria.

The Prime Minister, Edward Lowassa made the appeal in Kagera over the weekend during celebrations to mark the International Day for Fishermen marked at regional level in Kagera. All five EA member states were represented.

In a speech read on his behalf by the minister for Natural Resources and Tourism, Prof. Jumanne Maghembe, the prime minister said statistics from fisheries department indicated that fish in Lake Victoria, especially the Nile perch type, has dropped significantly in number.

Monday, 17 December 2007

The ministry of Community Development, Gender and Children is preparing a comprehensive plan to unravel children currently under exploitation in various sectors ranging from mining, agriculture, domestic servitude, commercial sex operations and other forms of ill-treatment.

Information gathered from a high ranking official in the ministry who preferred anonymity for reasons of not being the spokesperson divulged that the government was working on the final details of a strategy that would ensure a systematic removal of children subjected to exploitation, abuse, torture, humiliation and some said to be denied payment for the service rendered.

"In response to the government policy that all school age children should be in school, the ministry has formed a multi-sectoral task force drawing its members from various departments entrusted with the duty to propose ways to stop child labour in the country and help seal off the loopholes.Preliminary findings of the team indicated that there has been a very close link between human trafficking and violation of human rights especially among children being deceived to have better life in urban centres," said the officer.

Wednesday, 12 December 2007

The government has called on people living in border regions to take precautions in the face of a possible outbreak of Ebola, which has so far killed 23 people and hit 101 others in Uganda.

Wilson Mukama, Permanent Secretary in the Health and Social Welfare ministry, said in a press statement issued in Dar es Salaam yesterday that people living in villages bordering Uganda were at great risk of contracting the killer disease.

He said Ebola has no known cure and the ministry has therefore taken a number of preventive measures, including dispatching medical teams to regions at greatest risks of being hit. These are Kagera, Mara and Mwanza.

Friday, 7 December 2007

When Connie Reavie of Carrot River goes to Tanzania, East Africa, in February she’ll do many of the things that tourists do.

Reavie going to TanzaniaWhen Connie Reavie of Carrot River goes to Tanzania, East Africa, in February she’ll do many of the things that tourists do. Plans include a visit to Ruaha National Park and the opportunity to see elephants, lions and wildebeests.

As an ardent gardener, the Amani Nature Reserve, home of African violets, and visiting spice plantations on the Island of Zanzibar are also high on her list. And who would scoff at the opportunity to view Mount Kilimanjaro?

Monday, 3 December 2007

The signing of Economic Partnership Agreement between East African countries and European Union, early this week in Kampala, has divided the region into two different groups.

While the first group strongly believes that EPA deal is a breakthrough to trade prosperity between the region and Europe, the other group views this state with cautionary eye, insisting that this is another big blow to poor countries mainly from Africa.

Those supporting EPA are mainly government officials and their stand is that it was high time Africa opened its trade borders to the key trading partners like European countries.

They believe that a poor farmer from Kilimanjaro or Mwanza region can compete fairly with a heavily subsidised farmer from Holland or Austria under the so called trade liberalisation era.

Wednesday, 28 November 2007

The level of consumers' rights awareness in Tanzania is awfully low, according to the latest survey.

The Tanzania Consumer Advocacy Society (TCAS) Executive Director Bernard Kihiyo said over the weekend that the study has exposed that consumers` perception and attitudes with respect to businesses' accountability and responsiveness to consumers` needs and interests in Tanzania is almost near to the ground.

The survey was conducted in five regions on Mainland Tanzania namely Dar es Salaam, Kilimanjaro, Arusha, Coast and Mwanza Regions in February this year.

Tuesday, 27 November 2007

From CNN WORLD NEWS, MUSOMA, Tanzania (CNN)By Lizzie Cameron is in Musoma

The Musoma Engineering Project is the only charity of its kind in the region and aims to provide teaching and support for local disabled children and teenagers.With the project Lizzie will be helping the teachers teach skills like woodworking, leatherwork and dressmaking. Follow her experiences in her blogs and video diaries.

November 27, 2007Tomorrow, Dennis, 25 of the students and me leave for Mwanza to start our three-day sponsored cycle and World Disability Day celebrations.

Fistula is prevalent throughout the developing world and women are susceptible to getting fistulas anywhere there is a breakdown in the health system.

One by One provides grants to support the work of organizations working to treat and prevent obstetric fistula in the developing world. One by One’s primary grantee for 2007 is the Bugando Medical Center in Mwanza, Tanzania.

Hardly a week to go before Tanzania marks World's AIDS Day (Stop AIDS: Leadership), another step towards fighting the pandemic was recorded this weekend in Mwanza when a new laboratory, able to carry out early infant HIV diagnosis (EID) using dried blood spot (DBS) was launched at Bugando Medical Centre (BMC) by the Minister responsible for Health and Social Affairs Prof. David Mwakyusa. Correspondent Simon Kivamwo witnessed the event and narrates further.

This laboratory is the first of its kind in Tanzania and will be able to detect HIV infection in children as young as four weeks of age.

Tanzanian Royalty is pleased to announce that a Phase 4 Reverse Circulation (RC) drill program has returned record high gold values at the Company's Kigosi Project in Tanzania. In addition, the Company has discovered a seventh gold bearing shoot containing encouraging values within one of two previously established shear zones on the Kigosi property which is located in the prolific Lake Victoria Greenstone Belt.

Saturday, 24 November 2007

After visiting Germany in September, Rwandan Prime Minister Bernard Makuza said Railion would assist with the construction of a route to provide the country with its first railway to access the Indian Ocean through Tanzania.

About 400 km of new construction is needed to link the capital Kigali to Isaka on Tanzania's Kigoma - Mwanza line.

Friday, 23 November 2007

A commuter bus filled with passengers leaves the Chai ya Kwanza bus stop along Nyerere Road heading towards the central market. Suddenly, from the opposite direction, a man pushes his cart into the road as he attempts to cross from right to left heading for Balewa Street. The driver jams his foot on the brakes as he swerves the car to the right, missing the cart and its pusher by a mere whisker. The sudden braking irritates many passengers some of whom are heard shouting in anger.

Recovering his breath, a passenger seated next to the driver remarks,"Oh dear, that was close!"

Tuesday, 20 November 2007

The National Bank of Commerce (NBC) Sunday night awarded best twelve small and medium entrepreneurs nominated by the Tanzania Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Agriculture (TCCIA) for their excellent performance last year.

Speaking during occasion, NBC Company Secretary Alfred Woiso said that this was the second time running for such an event to be organized by TCCIA under the sponsorship of NBC.

The competition was restricted to TCCIA members, though for this year, even non-Chamber members are legible for participation.

Saturday, 17 November 2007

Just six years after being re-opened, Arusha's third largest textile firm, the New Kilimanjaro Textile Mills (LKILTEX) has closed down. The management has confirmed the closure but said it will be for a few months. Workers on the other hand are pessimistic.

KILTEX closure has so far sent about 1000 people who were employed at the factory down the streets looking for new jobs. That will not be easy however, because the other two big textile mills in Arusha, Sun-Flag and A-to-Z , are also trimming their work forces apparently to cut down overhead costs especially in view of the recently announced salaries.

Thursday, 15 November 2007

Tanzania will get its first WiMAX network with telecommunications provider Hotspot Business Solutions pairing with Canada's Redline Communications Group to deploy the wireless network.

The first phase of the deployment starts today as Hotspot launches the service in the country's commercial centre Dar es Salaam and Mwanza, with the rollout eventually extending to Arusha in December 2007.

Wednesday, 14 November 2007

Banro plans to use Mwanza in Tanzania as its services base. Mwanza services the Tanzanian mining industry and can be supplied via the Dar Es Salaam port.

IT JUST might be that in the unassuming, home-grown demeanour of Mike Prinsloo, Canada’s Banro Corp. has chosen a man perfectly suited to coping with life’s logistical difficulties, large and small.

Having had clothes and other personal affects seemingly left behind in Johannesburg’s OR Tambo airport by the country’s national carrier, the veteran miner calmly set about some late Sunday afternoon shopping in Nairobi.

Sunday, 11 November 2007

THE Holy Father Pope Benedict XVI has appointed Father Michael Msonganzila (51) of Mwanza Archdiocese, the new Bishop of Musoma Catholic Diocese.

A press release issued by the Catholic Secretariat in Dar es Salaam yesterday said that until his new appointment, Father Msonganzila was the national director of the Pontifical Missionary Works at the Tanzania Episcopal Conference (TEC).

He was born on July 17, 1956 at Bukumbi, Mwanza. He studied at Nyegezi minor seminary and later joined Ntungamo Major Seminary in Bukoba for philosophical studies.

Saturday, 3 November 2007

SOME 192 babies, ninety of them girls, were found dumped in the past two years, the National Assembly was told yesterday.

The Deputy Minister for Health and Social Welfare, Dr Aisha Kigoda, said during the question and answer session that the babies were being cared for at various centres in the country.

“Unfortunately my ministry has no details over how many dumped babies died,” She said when responding to a question asked by Ms Mariam Kasembe (Special Seats). Dar es Salaam led with 139 dumped babies, she added.

It was followed by Mwanza , the country’s second largest city, with 18 dumped babies and Kagera 11, she said.

Friday, 2 November 2007

Passenger train service from Dar es Salaam to Mwanza and Kigoma that was suspended by the Tanzania Railways Corporation (TRC) for almost one year resumed effectively yesterday under a new name, Tanzania Railways LTD (TRL).

The nearly defunct railway, which was bought out by the India-based company on September 3, was originally slated to have a full overhaul of repairs and reopen by January next year, but trains left the station ahead of schedule yesterday. The Central Line is now back in full swing, running from Dar es Salaam to western, central and Lake Zone towns, and then to Lake Victoria, where wagon ferries will link up the former East African Railway lines.

Wednesday, 31 October 2007

Editor's note:Fond du Lac native Jennifer Hayes is spending a month in Mwanza, Tanzania, teaching anesthesia techniques to medical staff. She agreed to send The Reporter periodic updates on her adventures.I've settled into Mwanza, the second largest city in Tanzania (after Dar es Salaam, the capital), located on Lake Victoria in the Northwest of the country -also the second largest freshwater lake in the world, after Lake Superior.I live near Lake Victoria in a guesthouse on a hill overlooking the lake with somewhat of a view of the water below. Reminds me of Lake Winnebago in a way, but there are many inherent differences between this lake and the waters of Lake Winnebago, including the fact that it is infested with a parasite which causes schistosomiasis, so swimming is not recommended.

Tuesday, 30 October 2007

The Musoma Engineering Project is the only charity of its kind in the region and aims to provide teaching and support for local disabled children and teenagers.

With the project Lizzie will be helping the teachers teach skills like woodworking, leatherwork and dressmaking. Follow her experiences in her blogs and video diaries.

October 30, 2007Dennis and I have just returned from Mwanza. We did the five hour journey in proper African style this time and took the local public bus. The buses are independently owned by the local people and are all painted, by hand, in various eye-catching colors and patterns.

RESUMPTION of train services along the central railway line between Dar es Salaam, Mwanza and Kigoma on Thursday is welcome news indeed.

Prior to the resumption, passengers to Mwanza and Kigoma from Dar es Salaam had to travel by road to Dodoma to catch the train to their inland destinations. Passengers to Dar es Salaam from Mwanza and Kigoma had to disembark in Dodoma where they had to board buses at their own expense.

All this of course inconvenienced travellers a great deal. Travellers, some of them moving with their families and belongings, had to bear additional costs for meals and at times, accommodation, while waiting for their preferred buses to Dar es Salaam. Their ordeal would now be over with the resumption of the full-stretch services.

The newly-promoted Toto Africans of Mwanza hit Simba 3-2 in a Vodacom Premier League match played at the Kirumba Stadium in Mwanza yesterday.

Philipo Arando scored two goals for Toto Africans in the 45th and 59th minutes while the other goal was registered in the 57th minute by Simba defender Said Kokoo when he was trying to clear the ball from danger.

Lethal striker Joseph Kaniki scored the first goal for Simba in the 79th minute before Haruna Moshi added the second in the injury time.

Speaking to reporters early this week Monday in Geita, the GGM Managing Director, Brent Horuchuk, said that funding was committed for seven years period and it focused on education, health and management.

GGM for instance has been organizing the Kilimanjaro climb challenge since 2002, in which monies collected are donated to various beneficiaries in the country.

Friday, 26 October 2007

PASSENGER train services from Dar es Salaam to Mwanza and Kigoma that were suspended by the now defunct Tanzania Railways Corporation (TRC) for almost one year will resume next Thursday.

The operations will resume under a new management set up led by the newly established Tanzania Railways Limited (TRL). For almost a year, passengers to Mwanza and Kigoma had to travel to Dodoma to board the train to their respective upcountry destinations.

Dar es Salaam-bound passengers from Mwanza and Kigoma and other stations along the railway line had to disembark in Dodoma where they had to board buses.

Thursday, 25 October 2007

Lake Fast Ferry Company is set to resume express service on Lake Victoria next month, nearly 10 months after the Surface and Marine Transport Regulatory Authority (SUMATRA) suspended the company’s lake express ferries from operation.

The two 180-seat boats, which cost the company 1.9 million US dollars each, will resume their work as soon as the necessary paperwork is done, Lake Fast Ferry’s project co-coordinator, Azim Dewji, said in Dar es Salaam yesterday.

“We have already finished maintenance and are waiting for the fuel tax exemption permit from the ministry of finance,” Mr Dewji said.

Meanwhile, the SUMATRA Mwanza regional director, Mr Alfred Wariana, told the Daily News last Friday that the express ferry service which the government had halted to combat transport disorder on the lake should resume without a hitch.

Thursday, 18 October 2007

A Swedish company, Marin Matteknik, has launched a Sh100m survey of Lake Victoria that will guide the establishment of shipping services across the water mass that connects the three East African countries.

Lack of a comprehensive survey of the water body has in the past been blamed for the high rate of canoe accidents in the water body, as rocky points, areas with turbulent currents and hyacinth infested zones are not clearly marked.

Wednesday, 17 October 2007

FOUR members of the same family roasting a hand grenade mistaken for a sweet potato were blown to pieces when the device exploded as they circled an open cooking fire in Biharamulo District yesterday.

Acting Kagera Regional Police Commander Adihaki Rashid, told reporters that the lethal weapon had been picked earlier from a nearby bush by Chacha Juma (10), who took it home to cook thinking it was a potato. Their house was also severely damaged.

Monday, 15 October 2007

The four fully loaded containers, worth $1.36 million, branded as transit cargo from Mombasa port to Mwanza in Tanzania, were impounded in Uganda after a co-ordinated investigation in the three East African countries.

The menace of counterfeits in East Africa came into sharp focus last week when it was revealed at a major international conference in Dar es Salaam that one of Kenya’s largest manufacturing firms may soon be forced to lay off up to half of its employees in the face of massive counterfeiting of its products in Uganda and Tanzania.

Haco Industries Ltd, which employees more than 600 workers, will have to trim its workforce down to 300 employees in the near future as shrinking sales in neighbouring countries are causing it to lose more than $5 million annually.

Thursday, 11 October 2007

THE Resident Magistrate Court here has ordered an Italian national, Santi Angelo Yunus, to leave the country within 24 hours for taking nude photos of two under age girls and using them in acts of unnatural sex.

The prosecution charged that Yunus, whose real occupation was unknown, was caught at around 11:30 pm. on September 19, this year, sexually exploiting two 17-year old girls (names withheld) in a guest house here.

Resident Magistrate Euginia Rujwahuka had first ordered Yunus, a resident of Franco-Travico in northern Italy to pay a 300,000/- fine or go to jail for five years. He paid the fine and the magistrate immediately slapped him with the PI order.

Wednesday, 10 October 2007

Cambrian College of Applied Arts and Technology of Canada (CCAAT) has entered into a partnership with Vocational Education and Training Authority (VETA) to run a joint programme through the Mwanza Regional Vocational Training and Service Center.

The programme is aimed at developing capacity of the VETA Mwanza centre to deliver training so as to support the mining sector in the country.

'The training will also support small scale miners on safety measures in mining and good environment practices,' VETA Director General, Zebadiah Moshi told reporters in Dar es Salaam yesterday.

Tuesday, 9 October 2007

HIV infection rate is declining at the Williamson Diamond Mines in Mwadui, Shinyanga region, statistics from the mine indicate.

Assistant Chief Medical Officer of the mine hospital, Dr Wallace Ngwessa, said at the weekend that six out of 100 members of the mining community were currently estimated to be infected with the killer disease as opposed to seven out of 100 last year.

Saturday, 6 October 2007

GEITA Gold Mines (GGM) has paid out 200,000 US dollars (about 200 million/-) to Geita District as part of its contribution to local government development in the area as negotiations to improve other parts of the deal between the government and the country’s second largest gold mining firm continues.

GGM Executive Director, Mr Hatibu Senkoro told ‘Daily News’ yesterday that his firm has decided to pay the amount while negotiations are on because the decision reached earlier by other stakeholders to contribute to local government is valid enough and does not require much haggling.

I was amused last weekend when I read in one of the local Kiswahili newspapers about the people of Ukerewe in Mwanza region telling the Prime Minister Edward Lowassa that the cause of fast spreading HIV and AIDS in the district was fish, or rather, the consumption of fish and fish soup.

Yes, it sounds funny and you can even laugh at it as the biggest joke. You can describe it as the lamest excuse of the century to justify the irresponsible habit of indulging in wanton and unsafe sex for the people of the district.

You may think (and I also think so too), that these people in the Ukerewe archipelago are not serious about fighting the AIDS pandemic.

THE government plans to take stern measures against indiscriminate teachers or individuals embroiled in examination cheatings in primary and secondary schools.

Speaking in Dar es Salaam yesterday, deputy minister in the Ministry of Education and Vocational Training, Mr Ludovick Mwananzila said the government won’t tolerate practices that lower education quality.

The minister was giving his reaction to over six primary teachers who were last week reported to have been allegedly caught writing examinations on behalf of candidates during the national Standard Seven examinations in Mwanza and Shinyanga regions.

THE Prime Minister, Mr Edward Lowassa, has directed the Mwanza Regional Commissioner, Dr James Alex Msekela, to recommend punitive measures against district leaders who cheated him during his weeklong tour of the region.

Mr Lowassa observed while giving a recap of his tour that some of the statistics stipulated in reports of Kwimba, Nyamagana, Magu and Geita districts were concocted apparently to please him.

He gave the Nyamagana District Commissioner, Mr Peter Madaha, a 20-day ultimatum to submit a fresh report to his office after learning that the DC did not collaborate with his experts in preparing the report.

Friday, 28 September 2007

THE Prime Minister, Mr Edward Lowassa, yesterday rejected the Nyamagana District development report, saying it had false information.

“This is the worst report I have ever seen since becoming Prime Minister. It is a shame and in my opinion there is no leadership here,” Mr Lowassa told the District Commissioner, Mr Peter Madaha.

The prime minister is on a week-long tour of Mwanza region. The premier disagreed with the report on secondary school progress in the district. Pressed, the DC disowned the report saying education officials had misled him.

Thursday, 27 September 2007

From Mwanza Guide 'online'By Hans Kristoffersen, editorWith effect from September 20, 2007 the visa fee for the American citizens travelling to Tanzania shall be US$ 100. The new visa fee shall apply for single, double and multiple entries. The changes have effect to American passport holders only - and not for any other nationality.

Tuesday, 25 September 2007

The police in Mwanza Region have arrested the Chairman of the unregistered Transport Stakeholders Association in the region, Julius Malesi, for allegedly inciting a strike of commuter buses in the city, which took place on Friday.

As Malesi was being held for questioning last Saturday, the strike had been called off and services resumed.

When contacted by PST over the phone, Malesi said he had been arrested for the offence he did not know.

At the same time, the regional authorities in Mwanza Region called on commuter bus operators to continue rendering services to the public as per the agreement struck between the parties involved in transportation in the city and the region in general.

Saturday, 22 September 2007

MWANZA Airport will be ready for use by high profile delegates to the Commonwealth Heads of State and Government Meeting (CHOGM) to be held in Uganda in November, after completion of some rehabilitation work, it was said here yesterday.

“A new parking bay for at least 20 business class jets will be ready in November,” Tanzania Airport Authority (TAA) Chief Executive Officer Prosper Tesha told the Prime Minister, Mr Edward Lowassa at the beginning of his eight-day tour of the region.

Mr Tesha said the construction of the new parkiang bay was part of the 14-million US-dollar in the first phase rehabilitation and expansion of Mwanza Airport .

HIV infection in some parts of Mwanza Region is as high as 30 per cent, it was announced here yesterday.

Mwanza Regional Commissioner James Msekela said the reports are in deed alarming. “We are really worried with those statistics, ” Dr Msekela said in a report to the Prime Minister, Mr Edward Lowassa, at the start of the eight-day tour of the region.

Dr Msekela said the most affected were fishing communities in islands and islets on the Lake Victoria.

ENTREPRENEURS in Mwanza Region have received over 1.821bn/- loans under the national economic empowerment scheme, the Minister for Labour, Youth Development and Employment, Mr John Chiligati, said here yesterday.Minister Chiligati told the Prime Minister 1,068 entrepreneurs who included members of Savings and Credit Co-operative Societies (SACCOS) and individuals benefited from the scheme, popularly known as “JK’s billions.”

Mr Chiligati said the National Microfinance Bank (NMB) disbursed 1.177bn/- to the entrepreneurs, while the CRDB Bank issued loans worth 644.4m/- under the scheme.

Thursday, 20 September 2007

Four children of the same family were on Tuesday clubbed to death by unidentified people as they slept in their house at Igumagombo in Kwimba District, Mwanza Region Mwanza Regional Police Commander Zelothe Stephen said yesterday that the children were left alone in the house after their mother, Mektrida Anthony, went to a neighbouring village to take part in a traditional dance.

The father, Daudi Lusindiga, was in his second wife`s house kilometers away as the children were murdered.

The RPC said the murderers invaded the children`s hut and clubbed them to death one after another before disappearing without trace.

POLICE in Mwanza and Shinyanga regions are holding six primary school teachers allegedly for misconduct and writing papers on behalf of candidates during the just-ended national Standard seven national examinations.

Four primary teachers are being questioned in Mwanza and two are in police custody in Shinyanga.

Mwanza Regional Police Commander, Zelothe Stephen, said the teachers had locked themselves in a room of a house near a school from where they copied answers to another piece of paper.

Monday, 17 September 2007

ABOUT half of over 800 city buses operators here have given newly introduced routes and fares a cold shoulder, contending that they were neither involved in, nor given sufficient time to comply with the changes.

They agreed with the long routes' idea, they said, arguing, however, that the fares don't tally with the routes and that groundwork was required before adhering to the routes.

The Zonal Transport Inspector of the Surface and Marine Transport Regulatory Authority (SUMATRA), Mr Alfred Waryana, nonetheless, maintained yesterday that the long routes would push through as scheduled and that state organs were directed to enforce the routes effective mid next week.

TANZANIA Railways Limited (TRL) plans to overhaul 645-kilometre central railway system, by replacing new 80 pounds trunks that will create standard weight and width for all central rails from Dar es Salaam to Mwanza and Kigoma.

The TRL's Managing Director, Mr Narasimhaswami Jayaram, told the 'Daily News' over the weekend that currently TRC's rail system has different weight and width which needs replacement of 80 trunks rail to form uniform standard.

Friday, 14 September 2007

The Company is pleased to announce that a drilling program has commenced on its Itetemia Gold Project in the Lake Victoria Greenstone Belt of Tanzania.

The Itetemia property is located some 90 kilometers southwest of Mwanza adjacent to Barrick's Bulyanhulu Mine property, one of the largest underground gold producers in the world. Itetemia is currently the subject of an option agreement with a private United Kingdom based company, Sloane Developments Ltd. which can earn a percentage interest in prospecting licenses aggregating 54 square kilometres.

The drill program will include at least 2,000 metres of Reverse Circulation (RC) drilling and 3,000 metres of infill diamond drilling which is designed to improve the confidence level of the gold grades encountered in previous drill programs within the Golden Horseshoe Reef (GHR) down to the 200 metre level.

Dr Msekela said unreliable transport on the lake was also making the government's dream of turning Mwanza into the Great Lakes hub an uphill task.

He challenged Marine Services Company (MSC) Limited to boost and avail its services at reasonable charges for residents in the zone to effectively utilize the world's second largest freshwater body.

"Increased transport services on the lake will also create employment opportunities," he said, advising the parastatal to consider paying its staff, particularly captains, handsomely to avert brain drain.

Wednesday, 12 September 2007

POLICE have foiled two robbery attempts that were to take place in Mwanza and Shinyanga regions, the Mwanza Regional Police Commander, Mr Zelothe Stephen, revealed here yesterday.

Mr Stephen said police acting on a tip-off from law abiding citizens, nibbed in the bud the missions by four bandits from Bunda district in Mara region at the weekend. The bandits were arrested just as they were returning from a traditional healer at Igoma in Mwanza to get good omen charms that would have enabled them to carry out the robberies without being arrested.

Tuesday, 11 September 2007

“It’s sad that people have raised such an issue. I don’t see why they should, because I am not the only Asian born in this Country. In fact both my parents were born here in Tanzania. My mother in Pemba and my father in Morogoro. I was born here in Dar and grew up in Mwanza so what does that make me? Definitely not an American nor a British not even an Indian. I am proudly Tanzanian and I know no other country but Tanzania. May be I am Afro Indian (Indo-African) but I am still a born Tanzanian.”

Those are the words of Richa Adhia in an interview with Bongo Celebrity blog soon after she was crowned as the Vodacom Miss Tanzania 2007.

Richa’s victory has attracted criticism from some members of public and has ignited a national identity debate in the Swahili blogosphere. Those who embrace Tanzania’s cultural and racial diversity have endorsed Richa wholeheartedly. And on the other hand those who perceive ‘blackness’ as the crucial ingredient of Tanzanian national image, are questioning if a Tanzanian of Asian background can really represent Tanzania or whether she qualifies to become a symbol of Tanzanian beauty.

Monday, 10 September 2007

Alstom Power Rentals, from the US, will instal a power plant in Mwanza by the end of the year to generate 40MW.History was made in Tanzania when a syndicate of the country’s own local commercial banks and pension funds raised a massive $240 million to fund the recovery of the Tanzania Electric Supply Company (Tanesco) in a deal that has illustrated just how deep the country’s capital markets have become.

It is the single largest corporate finance deal ever in East Africa -bigger even than the KenGen IPO in Kenya in 2004 and far surpassing Safaricom’s Ksh12 billion ($179 million) bond issue of 2005 in Kenya.

Arranged by Stanbic Tanzania Ltd, the six-year loan amortises after two years and has a government guarantee.

Sunday, 9 September 2007

Rites Consortium of India has finally taken over the running of the Tanzania Railways Ltd (TRL) on a 25-year lease after months of protracted talks between the group and the government.

However, the deal comes with several conditions including a moratorium on fare increases for the third class category -popular with passengers -and the investment of a $121 million in infrastructure over the next five years.

According to the agreement, a copy of which The EastAfrican has seen, $34 million will come from the sponsors while $77 million will come from the World Bank through the International Development Agency (IDA) -$33 million; and the International Finance Corporation (IFC) - $44 million.

TRL will be free to establish and revise tariffs with the exception of the third-class passenger fares.

Wednesday, 5 September 2007

PERIODIC inspections conducted by the Publishers Association of Tanzania (PATA) have revealed that the Lake Zone regions have the greater magnitude of piracy in the country.

Speaking to the 'Daily News' at the ongoing National Book Festival in the city yesterday, the PATA Trade Promotions Officer, Mr Matoha Dumea, said that they drew to conclusion from inspections done between 2001 and 2005.

Mr Dumea said that probable reasons for this trend were due to a readily available market and the availability of many publishing companies in Dar es Salaam.

He added that piracy in the publishing industry was increasingly alarming to the point where a number of associations had ran bankrupt because their books were reprinted even before the actual company had reached the market.

Tuesday, 4 September 2007

The government has been advised to take stringent measures against people found selling counterfeit products currently on the increase and threatening to retard the country`s development.

This was said at the weekend in Dar es Salaam by some city residents at a grand promotion conducted by Motorola Corporation which opened shop which would be selling Motorola products.

They said Tanzania had been a dumping site of counterfeit and substandard products and urged the government to take measures against people found involved in the business.

"We have various government authorities such as Tanzania Bureau of Standards (TBS), Tanzania Food and Drug Authority (TFDA) and Customs, all of which could assist bring the situation under control," said Juma Mkusa, a city resident.